Evaporation and condensation

Activities to try

1. 1

   Label and explore a cyclic water-cycle landscape

   Why it works: Each water-cycle term names something that happens to water at a specific place: a change of state (evaporation, condensation, transpiration), or water falling, flowing or being stored (precipitation, runoff/collection, groundwater). The stages form a continuous loop driven by the Sun, so 'in the correct sequence' is something you can see in the ring itself.

   1. Study a labelled cyclic diagram of a landscape: Sun, a lake or puddle, upward arrows showing invisible water vapour rising, a cloud, falling rain, a river, trees, and hidden groundwater below the surface, with arrows forming a ring.
   2. Point to (or on screen, tap) the sun-warmed lake and read/say: 'evaporation — liquid water turns into invisible water vapour, and it happens faster when it is warmer.'
   3. Point to the cloud and read/say: 'condensation — water vapour cools and turns back into tiny liquid droplets that make the cloud.'
   4. Point to the falling rain and say: 'precipitation — water falling as rain, snow, hail or sleet.'
   5. Point to the trees/plants and name 'transpiration' — plants draw up liquid water and release it from their leaves as water vapour (a liquid-to-vapour change, like evaporation but from the plant).
2. 2

   Match each term to an everyday observation

   Why it works: Each technical word describes something children can actually observe, and precipitation covers snow, hail and sleet, not only rain.

   1. Match word cards to picture/phenomenon cards: 'evaporation' ↔ a puddle drying up in the sunshine (or wet washing drying on a line); 'condensation' ↔ droplets forming on a cold glass or misted window; 'precipitation' ↔ rain, snow and hail falling.
   2. Say aloud why each pairing fits, naming the state change (e.g. 'the puddle water turns to vapour, so that's evaporation').
   3. Sort pictures of rain, snow, hail and sleet together under 'precipitation' to see it means more than just rain.
3. 3

   Sequence the stages and complete the cycle in words

   Why it works: Correct use of the vocabulary means placing each term in its right slot within a real journey, not just reciting a definition.

   1. Order a set of stage strips into the cycle: evaporation → condensation → precipitation → collection/runoff, then note the loop returns to evaporation.
   2. Complete a short cloze paragraph describing a water-cycle journey by writing the correct term in each blank.
   3. Match each term to its definition, and choose the correct word to distinguish evaporation from condensation in a described situation ('water vapour cools high up and forms tiny droplets' → condensation).